From Somewhere Afar
by mjp03
Summary: When you touch something incredibly cold for a long time, your fingers first turn numb, but slowly they overwhelm your nerves and turn warm and hot. That was the way with Akashi Seijuro. But, she was too much of a coward to touch the ice. (Akashi/OC) Oneshot.


Title: From Somewhere Afar

Summary: When you touch something incredibly cold for a long time, your fingers first turn numb, but slowly they overwhelm your nerves and turn warm and hot. That was the way with Akashi Seijuro. But, she was too much of a coward to touch the ice. (Akashi/OC)

A/N: Dedicated to Akashi. Story is set during Teiko. Review.

* * *

Nobody said love was easy. Especially when you're in love with one Akashi Seijuro.

* * *

When she first got to meet him, she disliked him on first sight. The cold demeanor, the horrible, horrible way he commanded his teammates to win, win and win. And those eyes, those icy, icy eyes, that could reflect no emotion, staring blankly in the face of victory. He was a cynic that believed in nothing but victory and manipulation.

* * *

When she first got to know him, her impression of him improved, a bit. She saw how he cared for his teammates. She saw how Akashi poured his heart into the team, nurturing it. She noticed how intense and concentrated he was on winning and appreciated all of it. But in a way, it was also sickening, to see how a person can be so contradicting to himself, how he can change personalities in a split second. It was like watching the ocean, sometimes terribly violent, sometimes eerily peaceful. It was literally the calm before the storm.

* * *

When she first got to watch one of his matches, a surge of respect blossomed. Despite how much she didn't like him, how she hated his icy eyes, her breath was taken away at his magnificence on the courts, how he wove confidently through oppressing opponents, and how his eyes destroyed every one of his enemies. It was frightening, yet breathtakingly amazing. It was truly a miracle, how a person could be so powerfully destructive, yet be so, so mesmerizing at the same time. This was Akashi Seijuro, and he was always victorious.

* * *

She was walking along the empty corridor, way past school hours, with a huge binder and a stack of books in her arms, containing all the notes she needed to study for her final exams. The librarian had flipped out when she asked if she could store her studying materials in the library and promptly shut the door in her face. Grunting, she freed one hand and reached for the front door to exit the school - and gravity kicked in.

All her books, notes, and paper wobbled dangerously and her hand holding all the materials began to shake. Her knees buckled and she stumbled clumsily and all her things slid towards the floor. And _bam!_

Everything was scattered on the floor and her notes were fanned out messily, with PostIt notes sticking out of the pages of her textbooks, and a furious scribbling on pieces of paper.

She groaned internally and started to pick up her stuff. Just then, a shadow loomed over her from behind. The overbearing, breathtaking pressure the shadow gave out was enough information. When the person bent down, she did not dare look at him, fearing the freezing gaze of his eyes.

"You have neat handwriting, Natsume-san."

 _Huh?_ Surprised, she whipped around, and found herself locked by a pair of ruby-like eyes.

Why would someone like him notice anything as trivial as handwriting?

When she gazed into his eyes, really gazed into it, she melted.

When you touch something incredibly cold for a long time, your fingers first turn numb, but slowly they overwhelm your nerves and turn warm and hot. That was the way with Akashi Seijuro.

She momentarily forgot to breathe, because until now, she couldn't feel any warmth from Akashi Seijuro. Until now. The warm feeling rushed over her, screaming for more and more.

His deft fingers that were much used to handling a basketball gathered up her notes in a quick motion. "Here." He handed her the stack of notes and cocked his head slightly. "You have beautiful eyes."

And he left, leaving her crouching in the middle of the corridor, in front of the front door, surprised.

Why would someone like him notice anything as trivial as beauty?

Perhaps, just perhaps, there is still a tiny, tiny part of him that could still appreciated things other than victory. The chunk of ice in his heart was too cold to melt, but if you touch it long enough, you can feel the warmth emitting from it. That was how it was with Akashi Seijuro. You had to be brave enough to touch the ice.

* * *

But, but, she did not approach him. She did not dare approach him. Because she was a coward. She daren't touch the ice, in fear of the initial coldness. She daren't get close, in fear of the frostbite. She daren't look at him, in fear of seeing the Akashi Seijuro she feared. She was not qualified loved him, because she was too frightened to accept every side of him. But still she loved, loved the Akashi Seijuro from the under the ice, where no one could reach, where she could never, ever reach.


End file.
